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    Friday, May 21, 2010

    Uganda and Malawi-Faith leaders speak out


     

    Uganda & Malawi – Faith Leaders Speak Out:

    Denounce imprisonment of two men for announcing their engagement

     

    May 21, 2010, New York, NY   When two men in Malawi were sentenced to a maximum prison term of 14 years for announcing their engagement to each other, a coalition of more than twenty faith organizations began making a strong push for mainline faith leaders to speak out through signing on to a "Uganda Declaration," which calls for a stop to all state-sponsored attacks on the life and liberty of lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender people. 

     

    Reverend Geoffrey A. Black, General Minister and President, United Church of Christ, said, "We speak out against this action as faith leaders in traditions with relationships that span the globe.  In that global network are people of faith with widely varying opinions and cultural understanding of family and human sexuality.  Yet, when we talk together, overwhelmingly, people of faith agree that every person has the right to life and liberty, regardless of sexual orientation or gender identity.

     "Today, we speak out in defense of life and liberty—basic human rights—for lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender people everywhere," said Rev. Nancy Wilson, Moderator of the Metropolitan Community Church, "We protest the imprisonment of this couple and choose this moment to join our voices to right this wrong, and to take actions that will eliminate all laws that allow punishment of people for their sexual orientation or gender identity.

     

    ·         We urge faith leaders and all people of good faith to sign the "Uganda Declaration" that commits us to living out our human rights statements in our respective traditions by working to  eliminate laws that punish people based on their sexual orientation or gender identity;

     

    ·         We urge government officials in Malawi to intervene in this case of wrongful imprisonment and release these two men who have already served months in prison;

     

    ·         We urge the United States government and the United Nations to use its diplomatic influence in this case and others to work toward the full recognition and implementation of human rights for all people, regardless of sexual orientation and gender identity."

     

    Dr. Sylvia Rhue, Director of Religious Affairs for the National Black Justice Coalition, said, "Malawi is predominantly a Christian population, as is Uganda, where a death penalty bill was proposed as punishment for gay people.  Such state-sponsored persecution goes against both human decency and core faith values of love of neighbor.  But, no matter what the religious tradition or social setting, persecution of minorities must be challenged by all people of good will.  We call on all people to speak out against this violence and we do so today because if we are silent, people will continue to sit in prison or hang from gallows, simply because of who they love or how they express their gender identity.  We speak because we know that if we are silent, we are complicit." 

     

    Click here to sign the Uganda Declarationhttp://welcomingresources.org/uganda.htm

     

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    Wednesday, May 19, 2010

    Pool Party & BBQ June 19th







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    Pool party
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    Sunday, May 16, 2010

    The reason we celebrate the Pride Parade

    The reason we celebrate Gay Pride parade

     

    I had a friend once that asked me why gays needed to have a day in which they flaunted being gay to the rest of the population. She thought that it sent the wrong image and if the LGBT community wanted to gain allies they needed to refrain from this celebration or at the very least tone down the celebration and restrict the skimpy male and female outfits worn by some on the parades.

     

    I at the time did not have an answer for her because my son had just come out to us and told us he was gay, it took a lot of reading and learning about the LGBT community.  Now I have the answer for her and anyone else that may think like that.

     

    My husband and I are there for other children whose parents have turned their backs on them, we are there so they can see that their being gay is celebrated by others and not condemned, that being LGBT is normal, that they are normal and fit in with the rest of society, that there are other people that are really "Christian" and accept LGBT people, that other large organizations, and city government officials accept them!

     

    We walked with PFLAG the very first time two years ago, we both marched with our signs that read "Real Christians for same sex marriage" and "What would Jesus do? He would be ok with same sex marriage NO on 8" and "we love both our children gay and straight". The love we felt from the crowd was just overwhelming, we walked the entire way on a "Love high" and I with tears streaming down my face", and yes some of the floats had scantily clad young people but it was no different that if they were at the beach, I've seen worse on television, the beach, Mardi Gras, etc. There were a lot of children there in the parade and as spectators, this is a family affair and I am never going to miss one of these as long as we need to let other young people know we are here for them, until the day comes when the LGBT community is accepted and not targeted for hate crimes and by the extreme fanatical religious groups.  I do hope that the day will come when we don't need to hold a "Gay Pride parade" but I don't see that in my lifetime unfortunately so we try to work on one heart and mind at a time.

     

    I am co President of PFLAG SD now and I truly believe in our mission statement:

    PFLAG promotes the health and well being of gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender persons and their families and friends through Support, to cope with an adverse society; Education, to enlighten an ill informed public; and Advocacy, to end discrimination and to secure equal civil rights.  PFLAG provides opportunity for dialogue about sexual orientation and acts to create a society that is healthy and respectful of human diversity.

     

    I invite anyone to attend and walk with PFLAG in the parade and see for yourselves it is a wonderfully uplifting experience.  Last year I went to La Mesa city council because councilwoman Sterling had withdrawn support for the Pride parade and had heard and made some comments against the Pride parade event and I invited her to attend and see for herself.  I did take lots of pictures and can share them with anyone that wants to see them.

     

    Patti Boman

    A PFLAG Mom

    www.pflag.com

     

     

    Police say Oak Lawn assault is not a hate crime | Dallas - Fort Worth News | wfaa.com | Crime

    http://www.wfaa.com/news/crime/Police-say-Oak-Lawn-assault-is-not-a-hate-crime-93874624.html

    Patti Boman

    Be the change that you want to see in the world.
    Ghandi

    Saturday, May 15, 2010

    Hope College upholds Gay policy

     

    Hope College Upholds Gay Policy amid Protest

    A Reformed Christian college in Holland, Mich., on Friday rejected petitions by gay rights advocates and alumni to drop its policy on homosexuality.

    Sat, May. 08, 2010 Posted: 07:51 PM EDT


    A Reformed Christian college in Holland, Mich., on Friday rejected petitions by gay rights advocates and alumni to drop its policy on homosexuality.

    After months of protest and criticism sparked by a decision not to allow the film "Milk" to be screened on campus, Hope College's board of trustees reaffirmed its position that homosexual practice is contrary to Scripture.

    "The college's current position on homosexuality is based on its interpretation of scripture. It is recognized that well-intentioned Christians may disagree on scriptural interpretation. Still, humbly and respectfully, the college aligns itself in its interpretation with its founding denomination, the Reformed Church in America, the orthodox Christian Church throughout the ages, and other Christian colleges and universities," the board said in a statement, according to The Holland Sentinel.

    A petition was started earlier this year in an effort to push for the removal of the college's policy on homosexuality, written in 1995, which also states that the college does not approve gay advocacy but encourages love and sensitivity in the care of all people.

    Endorsed by some alumni, students and faculty, the petition was passed around after the school had barred a campus screening of the Academy Award-winning "Milk," a 2008 film on the life of Harvey Milk, who became California's first openly gay elected official.

    The film's screenwriter, Dustin Lance Black, showed the movie and hosted panels in two non-college theaters near the campus. The events were sold out with mainly students and faculty from Hope College.

    Opponents of Hope College's policy have argued that the school has not opened dialogue on the issue of homosexuality.

    The issue, however, has been discussed on campus for over a decade, particularly in 1999 when gay rights groups visited the campus and when the school denied the bid of the Gay Straight Alliance to be recognized as a formal campus student organization during the 2000-01 school year.

    Hope College is a more than 140-year-old institution and its mission is to educate students for lives of leadership and service in the context of the historic Christian faith. Currently, the college has 3,230 students.

    Nathan Black
    Christian Post Reporter


    Laura Bush on gay marriage

    Former first lady Laura Bush thinks gay marriage is coming, and, despite her husband's objection, she supports it. "When couples are committed to each other and love each other they ought to have the same sort of rights that everyone has," Bush told Larry King last week on CNN.

    Former President George W. Bush's wife said he's like many people who have trouble coming to terms with gay marriage because "it's a real reversal for them -- they see marriage as traditionally between a man and a woman."

    "I also think it's a generational thing," she added.

    Asked if gay marriage will be accepted some day, Bush said, "It will come, I think.''


    Catholic school kicks out kid of Lesbians

    Catholic School Kicks Out ANOTHER Kid Because Parents Are Lesbians

    http://tinyurl.com/2ct7j65

    Having learned their lesson from the pedophile priest sex abuse scandal, Catholic leaders are taking prompt action to curb another moral scourge: children with lesbian parents. For the second time in 3 months, a Catholic School in Massachusetts has rejected an elementary scho0l-aged child because his parents are gay. As Queerty puts it, "Ah, the Catholic Church, where pedophiles are welcome, but lezmos: stay out!"

    The principal and priest said that the parents' relationship was in "discord" with Church teachings and that teachers wouldn't be able to answer the kid's questions. Somehow, they manage fine with the children of sinners like divorced people and single parents, as the boy's  mom pointed out to the AP:

       The church's stance against homosexual relationships was no shock, but the woman said she didn't think it was a deal-breaker, given the church's "many variations of tolerance," such as its inclusion of families of divorce, which the church doesn't recognize.

       "There are many different non-traditional families that fall under the umbrella of the Catholic Church, and I guess we assumed we would fall under one of those," she said...




    Wednesday, May 12, 2010

    May PFLAG Newsletter



    Our May newsletter is now online at:  http://pflag.com/pdf/pf_news_current.pdf

    Our general meeting in Mission Valley will be held on Monday, May 24th. Please join for our 12th Annual Scholarship Awards Ceremony & reception where we will be presenting 7 scholarships to LGBT college or college bound students. This will be followed by our support groups. See inside newsletter for other support groups throughout the county.

    Tuesday, May 11, 2010

    When a teen says they are gay


    Subject: When a teen says they r gay

    Sparks have been flying around that question this spring.

    Early last month, a small group called the American College of Pediatricians (ACP) sent a letter to the nearly 15,000 school superintendents in the U.S., stating that most adolescents who experience same-sex attraction at age 12 no longer do by age 25, and warning that prematurely labeling them could lead some "into harmful homosexual behaviors they otherwise would not pursue." The letter also stated that homosexual attraction and/or gender confusion "can respond well to therapy."

    Rogelio V. Solis

    Constance McMillen, far right, a Mississippi lesbian teen whose prom was canceled.

    Risks of Rejection

    An estimated 2% to 7% of U.S. teens are lesbian, gay or bisexual. Of these, those who felt accepted by their families fared better than young adults who felt rejected as adolescents. Young people in the latter group are:

    • Eight times more likely to attempt suicide.
    • Six times more likely to suffer depression.
    • Three times more likely to use illegal drugs.
    • Three times more likely to engage in unprotected sex.

    Source: Family Acceptance Project, San Francisco State University

    The far larger American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) posted a statement saying it is in no way affiliated with the ACP and referred schools and parents to its own publications that urge acceptance of gay, lesbian and bisexual youth. (The ACP was founded in 2002 by pediatricians protesting the AAP's support of homosexual parenting.) The National School Boards Association also backed the AAP's position and warned schools not to be confused by the similarly named groups. And several prominent researchers, including geneticist Francis S. Collins, director of the National Institutes of Health, accused the ACP of distorting its research to make its case against homosexuality.

    Other incidents this spring: One Mississippi high school canceled its prom rather than allow one senior to bring a same-sex date; another refused to let a girl be photographed for the yearbook wearing a tuxedo rather than the customary formal drape, and a group called PFOX (Parents and Friends of Ex-Gays) distributed fliers advocating sexual-reorientation therapy in some Montgomery County, Md., schools.

    Behind all the incidents is the long-running dispute over when and how sexual orientation develops and whether outside influences can affect it.

    Where to Find Help

    While the development of same-sex attraction isn't completely understood, most medical and mental-health professionals have long concluded that being gay is not an illness and that people cannot choose their true sexual orientation. It seems to develop slowly in early childhood; studies show that on average, young people, gay and straight, first become aware of sexual attraction about age 10.

    Experimentation is fairly common in adolescents—and sexual activity isn't the same as sexual orientation. According to the AAP, one survey of 13- to 19-year-olds found that 1 in 10 boys and 1 in 17 girls reported having at least one same-sex sexual experience; but most studies estimate that only 2% to 7% of U.S. teens consider themselves lesbian, gay or bisexual.

    "By the time children are 11, 12 and 13, they have a very good sense that their sexual orientation may be different from the majority of their friends," says Ellen Perrin, a developmental-behavioral pediatrician at the Floating Hospital for Children at Tufts Medical Center in Boston. "There is no evidence that people could become gay because of external influences," she adds.

    The ACP maintains that homosexual attraction is changeable—and dangerous. ACP President Thomas Benton, a Gainesville, Fla., pediatrician, likens homosexuality to drunken driving: "If I was aware that my teenage son was thinking about getting drunk and operating a car, I'd do everything in my power to prevent him from doing that," he says. Dr. Benton also says that schools "should provide an environment that is safe for all children, but they shouldn't promote an agenda. They shouldn't say, 'Let's have a coming-out party.' "

    Dr. Benton declined to say how many members it has; others have estimated about 200. The AAP has 60,000 members.

    Dean Byrd, an ACP adviser and president of National Association for Research & Therapy of Homosexuality (Narth), which advocates reorientation therapy, added in an email: "The adolescent brain itself is under construction and very much influenced by experience and environment. There is tremendous danger in labeling—premature labeling of adolescents, primarily because of this fluidity."

    Many researchers who have studied gay and lesbian youth agree that they face a higher risk of mental and physical problems, but they content that those problems stem mostly from social stigma and feelings of rejection.

    Researchers at the Family Acceptance Project at San Francisco State University have conducted interviews with gay and lesbian youths and their families, studying the impact of rejection or acceptance across several ethnic groups.

    In a survey of 224 these young adults aged 21 to 25, published in the journal Pediatrics last year, those who reported high levels of family rejection during adolescence were more than eight times as likely to have attempted suicide; nearly six times as likely to report high levels of depression; more than three times as likely to use illegal drugs and more than three times as likely to be at high risk for sexually transmitted diseases.

    "Families and caregivers have a dramatic and compelling impact on their LGBT children's health, mental health and well-being," says Caitlin Ryan, director of the Family Acceptance Project. She also notes that because gender orientation starts so early, "we tell parents and families that they need to provide a supportive environment for their children before they know who they'll become." If family members make jokes and derogatory comments about people they meet or images on TV, children will internalize those messages and they can have a lasting impact on how they see themselves.

    And even in families that don't accept that their children are gay, it's still important to be supportive, Dr. Ryan says. "Teens need to know that they can go to their parents with a problem and their parents won't hate them or hit them and they could talk it through." The group has studied the impact of more than 100 behaviors on LGBT young people. Among those that make them feel most accepted: asking about their interests, welcoming gay friends in the home and finding positive role models.

    In some cases, children who grow up believing that homosexuality isn't acceptable may try to deny and ignore their own feelings. "We call it going underground," says Dr. Perrin. "They live that way until they are 30 or 40 and say, 'I just can't do it anymore.' Or maybe some of them their whole life live in a pretend world of not feeling quite right but it's the best compromise they can make to feel accepted."

    Groups like Narth cite research that sexual reorientation therapy can be effective, but more mainstream organizations say it can do lasting damage.

    "If kids get the message that who they are in unacceptable, then they will carry that scar for the rest of their lives," says Gary Remafedi, a professor of pediatrics at University of Minnesota.

    "Telling parents that this is an illness, that they should force their children to seek some cure that doesn't exist is quackery and its malpractice."

    Dr. Perrin, who works with some young children with atypical gender interests and behaviors, says she advises parents to support their kids' interests, whatever they are, and try to expand them with gender-neutral activities. "I tell them to not forbid boys from playing with Barbie dolls, and don't excessively encourage playing with Barbie dolls," she says. "I say, we have no idea how your child is going to develop in terms of gender identify or sexual orientation, but in either case, your job is accept whatever your child is and support that development."

    If adolescents are confused about their sexual identify, should parents try to help, and how?

    Margaret J. Blythe, a professor of pediatrics at Indiana University School of Medicine and chairwoman of the AAP's committee on adolescents, says she sees many kids who are uncertain about their sexual orientation who have never played out any of their sexual attraction. "They're afraid of being rebuffed, or they know it's a huge risk," she says. "I think these teens are saying, 'Just let me figure it out.' They will. It becomes very apparent to them."

    "I often hear them say, 'I knew my son was gay. I just didn't know how to bring it up,' " says Dr. Blythe.

    She says she routinely tells adolescent patients that "teens in your age group have questions about whether they are attracted to the same sex, or the opposite sex, and having an attraction doesn't mean you are labeled. Some will automatically say, 'No way. I'm only attracted to girls.' They may come back and talk about it later. You've established a foundation that you're open to talking about it."

    Write to Melinda Beck at HealthJournal@wsj.com

    MORE IN HEALTH

    About Melinda Beck

    As The Wall Street Journal's new Health Journal columnist, Melinda Beck is returning to her love of reporting after a seven-year stint as the editor of Marketplace, the paper's second section. Before joining the Journal in 1996 as deputy Marketplace editor, Melinda was a writer and editor at Newsweek magazine, and wrote more than two dozen cover stories on topics ranging from the Oklahoma City bombing to the O.J. Simpson trial to liquid diets and the dilemmas of long-term care. She's always found covering health-care issues particularly exciting, as evidenced by awards she's won for her stories from the Arthritis Foundation, the AARP, the American Society on Aging, the American College of Emergency Physicians, the National Institute of Health Care Management and the American College of Health Care Administrators. Melinda graduated from Yale University and lives in New York City with her husband and two daughters.


    Thankyou
    Patti Boman

    Be the change that you want to see in the world
    Ghandi